Pranic Partnership
by iparasitic
Summary: Todd, stuck in Atlantis, ends up relying on a psionic vampire, a human, to keep him sustained with life force. A bond grows between wraith commander and energy parasite, but will it last through the trial a new threat to Earth brings?
1. Chapter 1

How many more times did he have to explain to Sheppard that he had to be released to somehow travel home? The Hunger, after about five weeks stranded on Earth, was starting to gnaw. He'd survived considerably longer within Kolya's cells, but that didn't make it any less irritating. This served to only shorten his already prickly mood at finding himself a prisoner of his 'brother' again. Even the knowledge that they were on Earth, the one place him and his brethren had been striving to find, had lost its allure. With a huff, he ceased his irritable pacing of McKay's spare and probably un-networked laboratory and set to work. He'd requested to be given something, anything, to do to occupy his mind. And so the scientist had given him the task of data crunching, analysing it all for any mistakes and organising the mass of numbers and information into categories. All of it would be checked before being put into the base computers of course. The Atlanteans, after some years in the Pegasus Galaxy against various adversaries, had learnt the benefit of double-checking everything. Eyeing the mug of coffee, he raised the beverage before sniffing at it. It was different, to say the least. He took a sip after deeming that it was safe, and then wrinkled his nose up. Too strong for his liking. Whoever had made it clearly didn't want to go to sleep for quite some time. That was when a voice crackled over the radio – John's.  
"Todd, meet me in Woolsey's office."

That was it. No explanation, just another demand without even so much as a 'by your leave'. Sighing heavily, he saved what data he'd gotten through in the hour before allowing the guard to shackle on the leather glove as soon as the door had been closed behind him once he'd stepped over the threshold. It was, probably not intentionally, a mockery of the metal one he'd worn during his time of enslavement. It fitted comfortably at least, and he could almost pretend that it wasn't restricting him in any way if he tried hard enough. With a barely audible sigh, he made his way with brisk strides towards the office. While he hadn't been allowed out of his guarded room and the laboratory much, save for the odd sparring session here and there, he knew by guesswork and fleetingly glimpsed memories from Sheppard that their once Queen's office was one of the rooms closest to the Stargate. He allowed himself an inward smile as he was proven correct, before the guards took up flanking positions on either side of the glass. Woolsey was sat across from him behind his desk as he suspected was the norm, and Sheppard was occupying one of the three leather seats set in the room. Todd, unwilling to sit unless gestured to do so, moved to stand in the free space out of the main walkway. This movement then allowed him to register the stranger. Petite and pale, the human seemed almost borderline unhealthy to his eye. Certainly not what he'd choose as a meal, but it'd suffice. Her head, under his scrutiny, then slowly tilted up to meet his gaze. Her features were youthful, innocent almost if he was willing to use such a word. No signs of hardship seemed obvious, save for the dark shadows around the eyes hidden behind a pair of half-moon spectacles. Her lips were set into a thin line much like mimicry of an expression he often pulled when forced into something he had to comply with. All in all, not a human that stood out or blended in. The staring between them resumed for a moment before Sheppard finally cleared his throat.  
"She's not for you to eat. She'll be collecting the life force you require."

Woolsey tapped his fingers thoughtfully on the wooden desktop, switching his eyes between the three. This might be an alternative solution that might possibly fail to sate his dietary requirements, but if successful, it'd prove to be near harmless for any humans involved. Spotting Todd's confusion in a heartbeat, he decided to explain. He felt like the third wheel almost, given how it'd all been John's idea after doing a little internet browsing – securely one way of course. Todd looked between them, arching up a hairless 'brow before finally, reluctantly, taking a seat. The Commander spoke first, his growling voice almost frosty.  
"I do not need someone to collect humans for me..."  
"She doesn't collect humans. Just the life force."  
John seemed almost smug at the wraith's expression. It made him feel good to see Todd thrown for once, and he eagerly drank in the moment before finally clearing his throat and making a gesture for her to take up the mantle of explanation. Sighing quietly, she gave a half-nod before finally starting to speak. Her voice was muted, but held strength to it that the whispery undertone didn't conceal.  
"Humans have chakras. These are energy points within the body. Your kind, the wraith, feed by connecting on a biological and metaphysical level with the heart chakra, the central point of the life force. I feed from it as well, but with no physical side-effects and I never take enough to kill my victims. I can also ambiently feed, taking in what life force people naturally give off as auras."

She waited for it to sink in, and was silently content to see Todd's expression minutely changing as he attempted to grasp what she was saying. A feeding method that would allow the victims to remain alive, that left behind no physical trace. Perhaps if he could harness this, it would be a safer route than the retrovirus disaster.  
"I will be away for a week. When I come back, I'll channel what life force I've collected into you."  
His attention was jerked back, a faint look of surprise registering in his near skeletal features. Among wraith, sharing life force was done only between brothers, worshippers and mates. And yet here was a human, willing to share such with him to ensure his survival amongst the Atlanteans until they decided to either let him rot or return himself to his own people. After a pause as he found the other two watching him like hawks, he finally lowered his head a little in a nod.  
"Very well..."

He had to fight to keep the enthusiasm from his voice. What would this mean if she was successful in transferring it to him? What would the Atlanteans do to her? He knew from observation that their security measures were iron-tight. Days off were few and far between, and excursions to Earth were often on a monthly basis. So, he spoke this.  
"Why have they chosen you, and not someone more recognised in your community?" He looked briefly surprised then as her first response was a giggle of amusement.  
"I'm a hermit among my own kind, dear Commander. I do not associate with others, and only those who need to know are aware of what I require to supplement my diet. I presume that Shepherd thought this was a good thing. An Elder might be tempted to make it widely known to gain depth and experience. I am doing it because it gives me a chance to further detach myself."  
It made sense, now that he mulled it over, even if Woolsey looked something close to baffled.

"So that's sorted then. She'll be back in a week," John stated, slapping a hand momentarily on his leg before moving out of the chair. Without a word or gesture to either of them, she followed him towards the Stargate down the steps. Todd watched them leave, his expression torn between a reluctance to be reliant on any but himself, and a sheer wellspring of interest at this capability. If it was something learnt, or written into her genetic code, could he harness it for his own kind to use? He shook his head, momentarily watching the weary Woolsey before wordlessly taking his leave and making his way under escort back to the laboratory. People no longer jerked out of the way when he came down a corridor, or muttered in corners. He honestly didn't know whether to be content or disappointed at the fact that the residents of Atlantis seemed to have gotten used to him. He shouldn't even be here, dammit. With a growl under his breath as he slammed the door behind him, he waited to hear the satisfying click of the lock before throwing the teabag from an earlier drink across the room. It'd been the first thing he'd grabbed in his need to hurl something, and he then looked at his damp palm with a look of disgust. Christ, would he go mad here?


	2. Chapter 2

He stood in the Stargate room with Sheppard and Woolsey, straight-backed and expectant even as he felt the searing gaze of Ronan from somewhere nearby and the lingering faint presence of Teyla within his mind. Some people, he knew, would take more time to become accustomed to him, which was even longer for the Pegasus natives given what their people had suffered at the literal hands of his kind. The last chevron finally locked into place, and the wormhole finally settled into that shimmering curtain. After a moment and what sounded like faint chatter from the control room, a figure finally stepped through as the gate disengaged behind.

She paused, eyeing the welcoming committee with an almost apprehensive expression before pacing towards them. John was the one she'd had the most contact with, so he was the one she greeted with a nod of her head. He blinked, before fighting back a smile. She'd evidently been shopping since her departure, and a floor-length coat of leather complete with horizontal buckles and chains now seemed to add a foot to her height, not to mention mimicking wraith clothing.  
"Nice coat."  
"Well it would have been a shame to entirely waste my time on a home trip, no?"  
Woolsey cleared his throat then, clearly wishing to direct the meeting to more serious business and the actual reason why she'd become attached to the Stargate programme in the first place. He paused, mentally mulling something over, and then smiled. It was genuine despite the cold, corporate feel that his clothing and former occupation still seemed to give him; unlike the frosty one she'd briefly noticed Teyla give her on her departure. Not all wished for her to help the wraith, it seemed.  
"Are you ready?"

"Yes. Is there a room with no cameras that I may do the process in? It's quite... intimate."  
A lie almost of course, but the expression on John's face was just too hilarious for her to have wanted to word it any other way. Todd's features seemed to twitch, although whether it was in amusement or anticipation wasn't quite possible to decipher. While it would involve only chaste contact, she had no desire for them to see her in the weakened state that often came around as a result, nor to see a potential failure if it didn't work. Pride was her sin of choice.  
"Very well, this way."  
She followed immediately, the coat picking up on either side a little as she briskly strode after the marines once they'd been given directions. An old prisoner cell, with security removed but every other precaution still in place to prevent escape. He followed her in, momentarily eyeing the guards before standing there once the door had been shut behind them. She paced and he watched, from one side of the room to the other with her eyes closed.  
"Intimate?" The purr to his voice wasn't entirely lost either, for he knew well enough what the main implication of that word meant. It merely amused him further to see her eyes finally open, settling sharply onto him with something bordering on a glare. Humans were so easy to annoy.  
"It is considered intimate because it is sharing something that you yourself need. Much like how I was told your kind reserve the Gift of Life for devout worshippers and brothers, so does the human equivalent reserve it for those who are in more dire need. And even then, we are probably less likely to help each other. Survive or die". Then she paused and a smile appeared on her lips.  
"I'll also admit that I wanted to see what their reaction would be to implying that I'd have to mate with you. Call it a sort of cruel joke on their imagination. Please, sit down on the bed. If I collapse, I would rather do so onto something I can sleep on after." A sign that she trusted him with her life and one that he was willing to ignore predatory instinct for. Survival won out the idea of what punishment might have been awaiting him had he taken advantage of it.

He complied, arranging his coat before watching her settle herself beside him. Closing her eyes, she then extended her right hand towards his chest. The compulsion to swat it away and just drain her was rising, and more so by the gesture she was doing – it mimicked the feeding hand to an almost intolerable level. But he remained still, shifting enough so then neither of them had to tilt their bodies too much. Her hand laid on his chest, her fingers arching slightly to get some purchase on the leather. He waited, patiently, but felt nothing. No rush of life forcing itself into him. Clearly he wasn't the only one, for a hiss of impatience came from between her teeth and the hand was moved.  
"Undo your coat."  
"Pardon?"  
"I can't access your chakra through your clothing. Ambiently feeding and reverse feeding involve entirely different processes."

While a certain amount of pride made him want to refuse, the idea of slowly starving to death if he rejected this attempt and it turned out successful wasn't looking too good either. He was painfully aware of what both of them were sacrificing. He his pride, she what she fed off. Whatever Sheppard had told the young woman to seal the deal must have been worth it. With a quiet sigh, he unbuckled the coat before finally shrugging it off and draped it over the end of the bed. She briefly admired it, running a hand over the buckles with a slight nod before eyeing his exposed chest once he'd loosened the ties keeping his heart covered. The slight arching of one eyebrow only served to fuel his ego and he resisted a smile from appearing on his lips. Shaking her head as though disgruntled at finding him a distraction, her hand then instantly slipped over to rest against him again. Her fingers were cold in comparison to his warmth, but that was nothing compared to the near euphoric rush of life force spreading out from the point of contact as she funnelled it through the imaginary feeding slit in the palm of her hand. Her eyes were closed with concentration even as his widened, his teeth bared as he restrained a growl of delight as he felt his strength return in a rush. Then the flow dimmed before finally stopping and the hand slipped off his green flesh. Inhaling deeply a few times until his breathing settled, he then peered towards where she should be. But, no, she'd collapsed. Standing before carefully using two digits to feel for a pulse, the steady yet near lethargic heartbeat indicated that she'd merely given him too much. Pausing, he then draped his coat over her shoulders before rapping with the back of his hand on the door.

Immediately as though summoned by some silent siren, Sheppard, Woolsey, Rodney and even Keller came down the corridor at a brisk pace. The sight of Todd without his coat, let alone his shirt undone, was probably surprise enough. But their response didn't faze him for now and he tilted his head a little to the doctor before addressing her.  
"She collapsed from giving me a little too much. I believe it would be more appropriate if you moved her to one of the beds in the Infirmary until she wakes."  
"Alright, move aside then please," was the clear order in response, before Sheppard followed her in to assist in moving her onto the stretcher wheeled down the corridor shortly after. Her eyes cracked open for a fraction of a second, and Todd could almost swear that they seemed golden before they closed again. But with a gruff sort of huff, he returned to the room to savour his new strength.


	3. Chapter 3

She made to stretch, starting a catlike ripple from her shoulders before feeling her skin tug at the elbow. An IV nearby jerked, and she slowly followed the wire down before it came to the tape securing it into her arm. A needle clearly had been used to get it in there, and if there was one thing that she absolutely despised, it was needles. With a half-whine, she desperately began looking this way and that for a medic to try and remove it. She felt fine! Finally she succeeded in sliding it out carefully, rubbing at the spot after she'd removed the cap that had allowed it to be inserted, and took note of her surroundings. She'd never been inside the Infirmary, and certainly hadn't expected any of her stays to be prolonged enough to risk picking up any injury. Her eyes stung slightly at the corners, and she rubbed at them briefly with a knuckle. Everything seemed clearer. Removing her glasses warily, her vision quality didn't lessen like normal. It was as though it'd perfected overnight. Waving one of her hands in front of her face, her smile broadened as she then placed the spectacles on the side of the counter. No need for those anymore! Peering from left to right, she then eyed the pile of her clothes nearby and snuck towards them. Getting out of this hideous gown was her goal.

Todd slowly woke, although focussed was more accurate. He highly doubted that he'd got any actual sleep since their initial landing on Earth, probably from stress and finding himself in a galaxy completely empty of his own kind – a vast sea of emptiness surrounded him, and the Commander hated the feeling. Opening his eyes slowly, he then jerked his head a little. Everything seemed blurry any further than a pace or so away from him, and it was considerably worse in the right. Shaking his head a little with a grunt of annoyance, he rubbed the corners of his eyes before opening them again after blinking rapidly. Still no change. With a snarl, he reluctantly admitted that this was something he'd have to see Keller about. His visits to the medical bay were certainly rare, partially because it reminded him of the memories he'd once briefly glimpsed of Michael's over the network. It'd been brief, fleeting, but utterly terrifying all the same. But this certainly wasn't right and it, daresay, scared him. With a groan of resignation, he rose in a quiet creak of leather to rap on the door.  
"What is it?"  
"I need to be taken to the Infirmary, there's... something wrong."

While most, if not all, on the base couldn't give a flying rat's ass if the wraith scientist keeled over and died in his cell, they also couldn't deny that without him, any chance of negotiating with even some of the wraith hives was out the window. He was a necessary evil to tolerate. The door was opened and the glove fitted as per procedure. The waist shackle had grown tiresome for everyone involved, and he'd already proven himself at least trustworthy not to feed on impulse if allowed the free use of his arms. That, plus it saved his guards from having to steer him everywhere. They flanked him as he followed the directions muttered by one of them, and paced in just as the visitor was striding out. Peering sharply up at the owner of the leather coat blocking her escape route, snake-slitted gold met human blue before a hiss and gasp of surprise was shared. Raising an index finger, they pointed at each other, wraith and psionic parasite, in perfect unison.  
"Your eyes!"

The statement of surprise brought Keller striding briskly round the corner, her throat-clearing of disapproval causing both heads to snap in her direction before a quiet gasp of surprise came from her throat at the sight. Todd's golden pupils were now a medium blue, and the human's were now a smouldering gold. After a second as it settled in, she then beckoned them with a twitch and pointed to two single beds beside each other in the main room of the treatment area. With equally reluctant looks, they took up the places pointed to them as she called in Sheppard on the radio.  
"Colonel, you might want to come down and see this."  
"What is it, what's wrong?"  
"I don't know..."  
"Alright, I'm on my way."  
John rounded the corner, with his gun holstered on his side. Even if the feeding slit was covered, he couldn't be too careful. And against the other life-sucker in the room, an amethyst crystal hung in open view around his neck. But when he took note of the two, nothing seemed wrong from a quick glance. No open wounds, no bleeding. Certainly nothing he'd consider worth radioing him for. So he turned to Keller, who was currently looking over the print-out from a machine nearby he'd seen her analyse and test the marine's eyes with.  
"I don't see anything wrong with them," he murmured, peering over her shoulder a second.  
"Look at their eyes Sheppard. That's not normal."

Looking into the eyes of Todd wasn't high on his to-do list. Doing so always painfully reminded him of how easily the predator could kill him if he was able. But he always had to remember that he probably wouldn't. They were brothers, after all, bonded by combat and all that. But he did as she instructed, forcing the Commander's attention by clearing his throat before his own eyes widened in shock. Todd's expression was almost helpless as he glared back, his arms folded over his chest.  
"Look at hers too." Keller's voice broke the moment, and given how she'd just realised what John was doing, she instantly met his gaze. The blue was gone, and now cold-hearted slitted golden eyes were narrowed at him. Sheppard then twigged as to why even Keller was confused. Without any harm or apparent surgery done to either, their eyes had swapped.  
"Has anything else-?"  
"No, they're both perfectly healthy and as they were aside from that."  
"Do you know why?"

The psi spoke then. John mentally made a note to name her at the first opportunity. Comically like the wraith, she'd refused to ever give him her real name – even the paperwork authorising her to be here had an alias printed onto them.  
"I have a theory..."  
"Do tell," was Todd's huff in response, indicating his disgruntled attitude at the unwanted change.  
"Well, the process of feeding for both of us involves the exchange of life force. With the wraith, it's one way. Only the enzyme goes in, but that's not really a metaphysical process. With me giving him what life force I'd collected, it was two-way. I had to draw in some of his energy to sort of tune in. It's kind of like trying to find a communication frequency. I can only assume that I drew in some of his life force in the process while sending mine in. It must have filled in the gap." Even John understood what she was explaining. She'd taken a little bit of the wraith to ensure that it worked and the process had used some of whatever she was to repair it.  
"Can you reverse it?"  
"Certainly, if you want to have him close to starvation again. This has never happened before; I've never fed on a non-human. Presumably the effects will go in time, I'm sure Todd doesn't want my eyes for much longer."  
"My body is repairing them actually; it's getting clearer by the minute."  
"...I want that ability, dammit."

He chuckled low in his throat, partially at her jealousy and partially at John and Keller's response of arched eyebrows. At least she hadn't wanted his feeding ability, which he suspected would have received a far more negative reaction. Wanting to heal as well as his kind was an acceptable enough trait to envy. Rubbing at his eyes for a moment, he then shook his head before rising off the bed.  
"Now that your tests are done, may I return to the laboratory?"  
Keller chewed on her bottom lip for a moment, looking to John for a second opinion. He shrugged. He couldn't think of a reason to keep them both there any longer. They weren't contagious, and her scans and tests proved that the whole process had been entirely painless.  
"Very well, if you're sure you feel alright."  
"Can you give me something to do as well?"  
He sighed. He should have known this'd come up sooner or later. She couldn't return with her eyes like that, after all. The lie of them being cool contact lenses would probably only hold up after the first day, two tops. Todd was simple enough, surprisingly, to cater for. The wraith seemed content enough number crunching, as it kept his mind active – he'd learnt from his last mistake of allowing him to join in on poker night however. A quick mind was one thing, but a telepathic ability was quite another matter to try and contend with. He watched her for a moment, and suppressed a shudder as she stared right back. Even on the features of someone who was harmless in comparison, wraith eyes were still unsettling.  
"Keller, do you think you could take her on as an assistant? Just to treat any minor wounds and tidy up, no chemicals or needles..."  
"Sure, I could do with an extra pair of hands."

Todd departed without a word, and Sheppard followed a moment later. For all their silence when before the Atlanteans, nobody seemed aware of the growing mental link between predators.


	4. Chapter 4

"Keller told me to come and treat your injury..."  
Ronan glared, casting the staff aside with a grunt and a little more enthusiasm than normal. He'd been privately hoping that the medic would have come down herself. Instead, she'd sent the earth girl to tend to the gash down his forearm. But, regrettably, it's not like he could just refuse. Jennifer wouldn't be happy that he was ignoring an ally. Ally... for the wraith, maybe. He felt no kindred spirit in her in the slightest. But he sat down on the edge of one of the benches and raised his arm, a wordless answer to her unspoken question. She moved next to him, keeping her eyes carefully lowered as her hands raised the cotton bud she'd removed from the satchel about her waist and dampened with the bottle of water. Wiping the blood away, he ignored the faint stinging before finally deciding to attempt conversation.  
"Why won't you look at me?"

"Because you do not like why I am on Atlantis, despite my ... services meaning you won't have to resort to more drastic measures that may cost heavy in the future." Her voice was clear, if a little quieter than he'd heard before. But she still hadn't met his challenging gaze. He did it to everyone at times, at least once. It was a sign of strength, a sign that you were aware fully of the other. Plus he couldn't really express his disapproval properly in words. Just as she began applying the medical tape to the corner of the pad, her guard dropped and her eyes rose automatically to meet his. Where he expected to see a round pupil and a naturally coloured iris, he saw nothing but the slit-pupilled golden gaze of wraith. His response was automatic, entirely without second thought to the lack of threat she presented. His forearm shifted down, moving horizontal to her chest before he spun, using his momentum to raise her up before finally pinning her against the wall and pulling out his dagger with his other hand.

Just as he'd got the blade level with her neck ready to demand an answer, something taller and leather-clad barrelled into the Runner with a snarl. She dropped to the floor, wincing as she felt a muscle protest in her shoulder on the way down before managing to catch herself before her head followed suit. She turned, instinctively tucking her legs closer to her stomach, to try and see what on earth had happened. Todd, who'd been on his way to the arena for some solo practise under guard, was holding Ronan at arms length with his wrist firmly gripping below the dagger. The marine's, having heard the disturbance from outside and shoved aside as well, soon had their guns raised as Sheppard ran into the room.  
"Todd! Ronan!"  
It took a minute, or what felt like one, for them to separate at the barked order. It wasn't the first time they'd had to have been yelled at for fighting, be it in the arena or while in passing. There were some things that not even years spent in a fragile alliance could repair. Ronan tucked the knife away, glaring at Sheppard in that familiar smouldering look before storming past him, likely as not to one of the piers to run off his anger. Todd, now seemingly under control again, merely blinked twice before helping the human to her feet. His check was efficient and swift, his hands moving to her neck first before finding the shoulder injury with a patting motion that got a wince off her. John watched with surprise at the sight; the Commander was acting concerned, and it now fell into place that something had happened when she'd tried to treat Ronan's injury that had caused him to attack and, as a result of that, Todd coming to her defence. Good timing, that wraith. But he interrupted.  
"Come on; let's get you up to Keller."

She nodded, cradling the limb as best she could against her chest before, as John began to lead the way back down the corridor, looking over her shoulder and lowering her head a fraction towards the wraith. After a pause and just so she caught it out of the corner of her eye, she saw his lower in turn.


	5. Chapter 5

"So this is your first day off in how long?"  
McKay paused, and then did a quick calculation before motioning for her to pick up the next box. His laboratory needed rearranging, and she'd been willing to be an extra pair of hands. His attitude, intolerable to some, was mild in comparison to some she knew, or so she'd claimed to one of the new marines who'd commented on her idea to help. He munched on a power bar as he watched her, ignoring the golden eyes that often seemed to look at him for approval. So far as he was concerned, she was nothing more than a temporary assistant until they found either a long-term solution to Todd's dietary requirements, or a foolproof way to get him home. He leant on one of his desks, eyeing the computer screen before answering.  
"A month, I think."  
A brief look of surprise appeared before she undid the box with a scalpel retrieved from the medical satchel she still wore around her waist. While doing odd jobs didn't really take up too much time, Keller had almost insisted that she remain as an assistant despite the incident with Ronan two days ago. That'd been a misunderstanding, nothing more. The wires were taken out and arranged according to colour, then the lights were grouped as well. All spare parts that needed filing.  
"So, are you feeding... off me?"

His tentative question got an arched eyebrow in return, and he resisted a faint gulp. At least he wasn't as nervous around her as he'd been around Katie and Keller. They'd been romantic interests after all. She was just... unsettling. Yes, that worked as a description. Not quite as much so as Todd, but that as something Rodney was willing to bet most people on the team were grateful for.  
"Yes."  
Resisting a shudder, a beeping alarm soon got his attention and a melodramatic sigh came from his direction as she used the steps to file the light bulbs away. It wasn't anything urgent, thankfully. Merely a weather warning to alert him of the coming storm and the fact that the shield would be raised for the time being.  
"McKay...?"  
"What?"  
"Can I go on one of the balcony's?"  
"Uh... sure"  
Certainly a strange request and he shook his head a little in disbelief as she almost skipped out of the room. What on earth was it about a mere storm that got her excited? Then again, he'd been pretty amazed when he'd first seen how the lightening appeared on the shield's impenetrable energy. He let her go, and then looked over what she'd done. Neat, all in order and precise; he'd have to ask her to help more often; it saved him having to repeatedly correct himself.

Todd sighed heavily, eyeing the screen with a growing dislike. It was all he'd done since he woke, after consuming what Teyla had called an 'apple' just to try and appear somewhat more mundane as he'd followed his brother into the mess hall. Bad idea. The constant staring, while ignorable, was nothing short of irritating and for the first time, he found himself cursing the psionic human they'd allowed into the base. She, while also a predator of their life, was allowed to roam at will while he, someone with far greater control, was forced to remain where ordered. How well-timed it was then, when the communicator in the room buzzed into life.  
"John here. The psi wants to meet you at the East Pier, two guards either side of the door."  
Rolling his eyes, which were thankfully slowly starting to turn back to their original serpentine gold, he made his way to the door and forced himself to keep still long enough to allow the gauntlet to be buckled on. At last, he was finally being allowed to see another part of the city. The storm warning hadn't gone ignored, but the Commander was well aware of the shield's tolerance – they'd be in no harm. The transporter door finally slid open, and he stepped out, welcoming the slight breeze tugging at his seemingly tangled hair even as his body sensed the swiftly approaching storm. He took note of her then, inwardly smiling at the choice of coat before mimicking her leaning position against the railing. At least around this one, he had no reason to try and prove himself. She knew what and who he was, and didn't really seem to care about either. A more realistic outlook than most of the team, who seemed to always be under the impression that he was planning to double-cross them at the first opportunity.  
"I thought I'd demonstrate another feeding method."  
"You haven't been off the base."  
"You'll see..."

The first bolt of lightening struck the shield, crackling and rippling over its shimmering blue surface in a pattern of vivid whites and golden colours. Her eyes closed, and the Commander suddenly found a hand resting not on his heart, but on his neck. Presumably because getting him to strip enough to transfer life force wasn't something she yet wished the public to know about – pride again being the weakness for both of them. Just as he was about to ask what on earth she was doing, he felt a surge of energy roll into his body at the same time as another bolt struck the curve of the shield above them. Growling quietly to himself, his eyes jerked before he spotted her other hand; extended out and with the palm up, it was pointing directly to the shield. Two and two; she was somehow, in a way he couldn't explain, channelling the storms energy into him. His lips parted a little in surprise as the feeling repeated itself, slightly stronger this time, as a pair of bolts struck in swift succession. Out of perhaps want to share it, and feeling a little greedy even by wraith standards, he moved behind her before shifting his arms enough to allow the expanse of his cloak – a wardrobe addition since he'd arrived and winter had come – to rest over her shoulders. Her hand moved instead to one of his, before the gauntlet was unbuckled. About to protest, her fingers then laid over his as the energy was then channelled more effectively through them into the feeding slit on his palm.

One of the marines, bored out of his mind and wanting to check up on the unusual pair, opened the door. What he found made both eyebrows shoot up in surprise. Wraith and human facing the storm, wrapped within the wool embrace of a cloak and entirely absorbed in the sounds of the chaotic weather. He shook his head a little, stepping back enough to remain out of earshot before radioing in to Sheppard.  
"Colonel, reporting in as you asked."  
"Is there anything going on?"  
"I... don't know."  
The click and buzz sounded after, followed by John appearing in the transported a moment later – the city responded more readily to him, and the doors slid open just as the shield lowered and the clouds cleared. He watched as Todd stepped away from her, the touch of their hands lingering for a moment before they parted and the gauntlet replaced before they took note of him. Todd merely inclined his head a little, and she lowered hers in a smoother gesture.  
"You'll be able to go across to the mainland in two days. Have you got a cover story for your boyfriend all sorted?"  
"Yes, Woolsey said that saying I got stranded in an airport that was down for faulty maintenance repairs was understandable enough."  
"Good, Keller wants to check up on your eyes by the way."  
"Yes Colonel."

Once she'd gone, he addressed the wraith.  
"What's going on?"  
"Nothing you need worry about... brother."


	6. Chapter 6

"We need to think of a name for her. She refuses to allow us to use her real name."  
"That sounds familiar..."  
"It wasn't me who suggested she doesn't disclose it, McKay."  
"So we're using poker night to decide?"

Ronan, peering over the top of his cards, slid three chips into the centre before selecting another. Todd, who'd been told that he couldn't actually play anymore, was playing dealer, while Rodney, Ronan and John sat around the sides. John took a sip from the bottle, finding little joy in the liquid – as no alcohol was allowed to be consumed on base; he had to tolerate the flavoured substitute. This was a traditional night. A forbidden event that seemed to be commonplace on every single military outpost he'd been on. Wherever gambling was against the rules, guarantee that poker night existed.  
"Well, I still think Lucy's a good name."  
"How about Worshipper?"  
"Come on Ronan, we're being serious."  
"So was I..."  
The Runner rolled his eyes, munching on yet another pretzel retrieved from the bowl in the centre as he patiently waited for Rodney to decide. He hadn't come up with any names, volunteering that he'd probably think of something entirely unsuitable. Plus he'd never named anything before, that'd always been John's job! Todd selected a pretzel after dealing out another round of cards to those of them that had wanted them, eyeing the salty treat before finally popping it in his mouth. His expression was bland for a moment, and then his lips pulled up into a look of disgust.  
"How can you consume this fare?"  
"Pretty easily." As if to prove his point, Sheppard took three and munched them down with a broad grin, much to the Commanders disgust. Sure, he didn't eat human food that often, but even he had standards when he decided to.

"I have a name idea."  
Rodney arched an eyebrow up. This ought to be interesting. Wraith, by nature, kept their names amongst themselves. All of those they'd come across had been named, and in the process, had shown disgust at such a mere label.  
"Do tell."  
"Prisca."  
"Well, go on genius, what does it mean?"  
Todd rolled his eyes and took a swig from the bottle of soda Sheppard had left on the table for him. The fizzy drink was certainly different compared to anything else he'd drank before, but the bubbles tingled rather pleasantly and the sweet taste was certainly nothing to complain about.  
"It means 'very ancient' in your Latin tongue. Her spirit, her life force, resonates with an older feel than either of you, almost in comparison to my own. It is a fitting name."  
Sheppard nodded a little, and McKay didn't seem to have anything to say against it either. It was feminine enough, and easy to pronounce. And, of course, it could easily be mutilated down to 'Prissy' if they wished to annoy her.  
"Ronan?"  
"I don't care."

That was when they decided what to name her, to give her a label that separated her from her life on Earth and to recognise the importance of the role she played in keeping Atlantis going smooth in relation to the wraith Commander.


	7. Chapter 7

_He smiled at the feel of it, the thrumming sense of belonging in the mist-floored organic machine as he runs a hand fondly over the mottled wall. But this was different. This wasn't any of the Hives he had occupied before, and the decorations seemed almost overdone in places. He strode down the corridor, finally entering into a room that bore resemblance to a hall. Lights, candles, flickered on either side, flanking the niches in the wall that bore statues carved from black jet. A dais, complete with Queen's throne, sits occupied directly before him. But unlike how he knows it should be, he can't feel the pulsing strength of her power even as she sits almost limp in the structure. His approach was steady, before he finally and automatically knelt before the figure that he was biologically, instinctively, designed to serve. That was when her head rose, and his golden eyes widened once a clawed hand tipped his chin up. Where a serpentine pupil should be in the right, a blue human eye peered back with mirth evident in the expression._

_He raised his head properly then, before surprise showed on his pale green features as he regarded her. Her skin was waxy tan, a rare colour among their species, and her hair a pristine, flawless black that fell, much like his own, in tangled curls about her shoulders. Her posture was confidant and entirely self-assured, with her figure embraced within the lover's tight grip of dulled leather in the form of a floor-length dress complete with panels of embossed velvet and a mandarin collar. The sleeves draped to almost cover her hands, which bore the traditional finger guards and yet, unlike most, wickedly curved talons that put even his claws to shame. They added an almost feral elegance, and all of this he grasped in just that single glance before rising to his feet. He recognised her, and she him even in this timeless state of mind. _

"_How did you do this, Prisca?"_

"_I do not know, nor why I have appeared like this. I was meditating."_

"_As was I. I can only presume that this is the most neutral place our minds fashioned when our consciousnesses reached the same state in our close proximity. This would also explain why you have taken on a form that I recognise as of my own species."_

_She nodded, before rising out of the throne in a smooth movement before pacing over towards one of the large hull windows, the action accompanied with the whispering rustle of material. After a pause, he joined her; dark and light, male and female, true and false kindred stood side by side. He peered out at the nebula system before them, taking in the beauty of the swirls of golden colour flecked with greens and reds. Nothing his kind, or humans for that matter, could produce ever compared to the natural wonders of space. He remained by her side, not quite touching but close enough to wordlessly state a dominant, almost protective role over the false Queen. While he might have taken offence had it been anyone bearing actual wraith ancestry deceiving him in such a way, her lack of appropriate coding meant that this was merely coincidence, designed to comfort rather than offend. _

"_I feel... right. Is that normal?"_

_He tilted his head a little to the side at her question, letting a faint purr out of his throat before responding quietly in equally hushed tones._

"_It is logical. You prey on what we do, only in a less harmful form. Your body is weaker than ours, and you must rely purely on going unknown to hunt what you require. It is no wonder that in your ideal mind, you are wraith."_

_This seemed to satisfy her, a faint chuff coming from her direction before she angled her head up to look at his. Even in this sleekly muscled and intimidating guise, he still stood at least half a foot over her in all his superior, older glory. _

"_May I get a tattoo?"_

"_In reality or in this dream world?"_

"_Here."_

_While aspects of her appearance and bearing already marked her out, tattoos for wraith were often as much an aesthetic quality as they were to mark rank and occupation. As he doubted that such a sign would transfer onto her slumbering physical body, he saw no harm to be found if this world, this Hive, remained cut off from the normal passage of time._

"_I shall think on it. I am sure a design can be found."_

"_Is it normal for me to be so tired?"_

_He stepped away from the window then, leading her back towards the throne with his guiding hand on the small of her back as she ascended the levelled dais again before almost reclining in the organic furniture. He remained standing, before finally moving his hand to rest on one of her shoulders and lowering his head enough to whisper into one, unusually, slightly pointed ear. _

"_Sleep..."_

_Her figure seemed to shiver, much like a hologram might if touched, before slowly fading out of sight. He kept his distance, and then stalked back to the wall again to peer out at the glittering cosmos. Yet another development. But this time, it was one that he would hold like a secret from the likes of the Atlanteans. It did not concern them, unless her behaviour suddenly changed as a result. They needed to know nothing. Inhaling deeply and taking in his surroundings for the last time, his own form then shivered out of the liminal plane as he sank into unconscious bliss._


	8. Chapter 8

Another day in Atlantis had just begun, the amber light of sunrise softly illuminating the corridors and control rooms as the shifts exchanged. The team, minus Todd as per usual, were gathering in the mess hall. Even Woolsey had decided to drag himself down at an earlier hour, which was something that tended to happen once in a blue moon. Munching on an apple as he settled himself beside Sheppard, he observed each of the main off-world crew in turn. Ronan appeared withdrawn as usual, perhaps even more so given the hour as he munched on a piece of toast. Teyla, to his left, was briefly rubbing at her temple before blowing on the steaming bowl of porridge she'd pretty much brought with her. Rodney was munching on a power bar, having already been awake for about an hour and therefore having eaten his main morning meal before everybody else as soon as the mess had opened. Nothing out of the ordinary, save for the crystals hanging around their necks as a precaution. Sheppard took a gulp of tea, and then finally decided to start off the morning's conversation.  
"So, anything planned Woolsey?"  
"Not for today. Be ready as usual, but there's no scheduled off-world missions until tomorrow."

Teyla smiled properly this time. That meant more time she might possibly be able to spend with Kanaan and their son. The boy was growing up fast, and it took the combined efforts of his parents and sometimes even other Athosians to keep him occupied. Ronan shrugged at the news. More time for sparring or practise, either way he'd spent most of it in the arena. Woolsey's next question soured the mood of the two Pegasus natives, despite the delivery of it being almost casual – confidant in Sheppard's ability to keep the situation cool.  
"How is she doing?"  
"Well she's got a name, and her eyes are going back to normal. She can feed him through storms as well, according to what Keller and one of his marine guards figured out."  
Rodney perked a little at that. Feeding like the wraith he could understand, but drawing sustainable energy from a natural source? He restrained a scoff however, eyeing the Colonel with a sceptical expression before speaking after he'd gulped down a mouthful of coffee.  
"Oh please, like that's even possible..."  
"The marine saw their hands touching, and her other one open towards the storm. If she wasn't feeding, or attempting to, what on earth was she doing?"  
"Well... it's just logically not possible."  
"You know the solution then don't you. Get her in your laboratory, and run a few control tests. See what else she can suck the energy out of, and have Keller help."

Woolsey cleared his throat a little then, drawing the pair's attention back to him after watching Ronan and Teyla leave. He had no problem with their dislike of the human's role, so long as they didn't physically do anything to hinder it. He adjusted the collar of his jacket for a moment before speaking; using the tone of voice that generally went along with a no-negotiation type suggestion, he spoke as clearly as possible to ensure that no misinterpretation occurred.  
"I agree with John. It makes perfect sense to test her. If she doesn't need to feed specifically on humans in order to sustain Todd, then we don't have to run the risk of her abnormalities being used back on the mainland."  
"Small problem there Woolsey," butted in John, lowering his fork with the sausage still attached to it that he'd just departed to get second helpings of.  
"Oh?"  
"She's probably got family..."  
"See how it goes."

With a resigned sigh as he found himself unable to withdraw his words to get him out of the situation, Rodney stowed an apple away into a jacket pocket before making his way towards the laboratory. Hopefully she'd wake up soon so they could get it out of the way as soon as possible.

Meanwhile in one of the rooms, she stirred, prodded into life by the feel of moving energies as the occupants of the other places nearby began to move. With a groan, she then rubbed her temples as her brain seemed to pulse. While the experience in the liminal hive had been one of the most peaceful projections she'd ever done, it'd taken a lot out of her. If Sheppard was still spreading it around that amethyst stopped her from ambiently feeding successfully, she'd be out of meal in her usual allowed haunts. Making the bed briskly, she then padded barefoot over to the full-length mirror propped up against one of the walls. Still pale as always, and still with the same figure as when she'd arrived; good. She leant closer, tugging the skin of her eyes down and sighing. Her left eye had completely reverted back to blue, but the right still stubbornly remained that wraith gold without any signs of fading. Ah well, it made her look different. No complaints. Shrugging off her pyjamas, she stepped under the blissfully steaming hot rush of water from the shower, letting out a growl of contentment. As a civilian, so long as she didn't turn up past a normal working hour, she had a relatively loose schedule – the pager Keller had given her made it even easier. If she was needed by anyone, she'd be buzzed, and was free to do what she wished within reason otherwise. But fate intervened today and she heard the low sound of the pager crackling into life. With a groan, her morning routine was cut short and she dressed briskly. No leather for today. Instead, she pulled on a pair of black cotton slacks, a fitted grey-pinstriped white t-shirt complete with attached tie and then the Atlantis jacket she'd been given. As blue was reserved for military and grey for scientists, she'd been given a black one with a patch sewn onto one arm. While she still wasn't an official member of the expedition, she was their responsibility.

Satisfied that she looked more professional today, she buckled the satchel through the belt loops of her trousers once more and headed in the direction of the Infirmary. A few nods here and there were given to those she passed, but everyone here seemed polite. Ok, almost everyone, but still. Already the scent of chemicals from the laboratories nearby was starting to fill the corridors, and the air seemed to almost thrum with the energy of the city itself. Now that would be a welcome meal. Finally entering the medic's territory, she acknowledged Keller with a nod of her head and a polite murmur before spotting Rodney. As the man was more sceptical, the wolfish grin was forced down and she repeated the greeting. He clearly wished to waste no time, given his serious expression.  
"I want to do a couple of tests concerning what you can feed on. Keller will be keeping an eye on what your body does in the meantime." Not so much asking, as ordering. He motioned to one of the beds, and she reluctantly clambered on top of it.

Keller gave her an almost apologetic smile, attaching electrodes over her chest and head before watching the corresponding machines. The readout was normal. Giving Rodney a warm smile that she hoped would lessen his currently bristling demeanour; she was inwardly disappointed to notice that this little test would sour his mood until completed. That was our McKay.  
"Alright, now that we've got a baseline, try to feed from me."  
He watched her almost smugly, voicing his request more like a challenge. If she was anything like what John had told him, she'd put effort into trying for certain. He'd left the crystal away from him for now, of course. She'd closed her eyes and laid down, and he almost swore he saw her flinch at one point as her breathing slowed. A minute passed, then two, and then eventually five.  
"I'm picking up a boost in brainwave activity, and judging by the ancient energy-measuring devices, an increase in that as well." Keller's voice made him inwardly groan, but he then touched a hand to his forehead and shook his head a little. He felt lethargic. Not tired and certainly not hungry, but certainly more sluggish than he'd been a moment ago. Flicking his eyes to her, he could almost have sworn that her lips had tugged up into a smile over her teeth.  
She stroked a tendril over his heart, her eyes alight as she felt the pulsing beneath, spreading his life force around the rest of his body and in the air around him. It was weakened a little, but she drew it into her all the same, directing it through her projected tendril back into her physical one resting on the bed. Moving might have clouded Keller's results, so putting in a little more effort was acceptable enough. But when he moved then to drape the crystal pendant over his neck, she let out a mental scream of frustration at the denial of what she'd been so close to taking.

Elsewhere inside his guarded room, Todd woke with a jerk as the noise ripped over the link that their first feeding had establishment. Like her, he had no need to rise early. He was a prisoner, entirely at the whim of the humans around him. With a rasping groan, he rubbed at his temples before pushing himself into a sitting position. Even without putting any actual concentration into his thoughts, his mind was certainly experienced enough to sense the tendrils slowly spreading out from the human. Idly curious, he found one of them and tracked it back, much like he'd have followed a path she'd walked. It was honestly not that different from telepathy, despite the sensations of the feeding being rather unfamiliar. At least he reached her, or what he assumed was her. Drawing his 'brows together for a moment, he then forced himself into her mind now that he was within breaching distance of her mental barriers. Mercifully they were already dropped, lowered from her focus elsewhere. And so, he spoke.  
"_What are you doing_?"  
"_Feeding_..."  
"_What or who on_?"  
"_McKay, but he's now wearing a crystal. They're testing me, testing my responses_-," Her indignance grew, perhaps more at the fact it was a challenge than at the methodology of the test itself.  
"- _and so I am giving them something to test_!"  
He withdrew his mind then, but lingered. Her life force, from what he could weakly determine, was deteriorating from spreading herself too thin over too large of an area. While her physical body was in perfect working order, the rest likely wouldn't fare well if she continued – like a wraith too stubborn to feed, the effectiveness when she eventually did might well be diminished. Silently making a note to explain this to Keller if necessary, he drew on his own reserves before literally lashing out into Prisca's mind.

She tensed on the bed, her spine arching as her hands clawed at the sheets as she felt the whiplash sensation from Todd's intrusion. Jennifer, who'd been growing steadily irritated at Rodney's attitude, moved him aside then and removed the electrodes monitoring her brainwaves, sparing him a glare as she did so. She was, effectively, stopping the experiment right now. No negotiation.  
"What?"  
"You knew damn well what challenging her would do!"  
"Jen... I didn't..."  
"Just stay out of my way for now Rodney."  
She checked her pulse and silently muttered thanks as she appeared to calm. Her pulse was steady, her breathing normal and, overall, no lasting damage appeared to have been done. Removing the wires from on her chest, she wheeled the machine away before moving the bed back in line with the others. If her condition was anything like Sheppard had described, this would be nothing that rest wouldn't cure. Or so she hoped.

Todd sighed inwardly, shaking his head. He almost regretted doing that. He couldn't imagine how furious he'd be if somebody stopped him feeding, so how would she feel? Then he huffed to himself and discarded the matter. There was no point dwelling on it, he was certainly no mind reader. He had a day ahead of him to deal with, and would so do with the same practised efficiency he always displayed in whatever the Atlanteans designated to him. To win their trust, or some of it, was the first goal in his mind. Only when he was sure he had all the cards would he start to play the game...


	9. Chapter 9

Todd sighed heavily, flexing his hand idly as he stirred from the bed. It'd fallen into disuse since he'd become a prisoner again. While he'd had times where anger had almost driven him to feed again, Prisca's presence meant that he didn't need to. His instinct was well and truly controlled. Shaking his head with a chuff of irritation as he allowed his thoughts to wander to such mindless matters for now, he reached out with his mind towards where he roughly knew the human was being kept. She was asleep and, judging by the faint image of white sheets and plain walls, in the Infirmary. Shaking his head, he broke the link and rose to his feet, pulling on his thick coat again and buckling it up after arching back enough to hear his spine give off several small pops in succession. While asking McKay what had happened would be the simplest solution, he just couldn't tolerate the head scientist's attitude for very long. Sadly, that was something that no amount of time spent in this place or around the team was ever bound to correct since they'd been forced to work together for mutual benefit during his kind's second fight against the Asurans. He almost growled at the memory, but managed to restrain the sound as he allowed the gauntlet to be buckled on once more after he'd rapped on the door. His right eye felt like it had returned to normal – the blurriness had gone – but Keller had still insisted on seeing him daily until she was positive it had reversed. For a female that wasn't a Queen among her people, the medic could be alarmingly unswayable when set on a course of action. Keeping his head high, he wove his way from corridor to corridor until he finally paced up the steps to the medical bay. Chuffing quietly to himself, he then spotted 'Jenn-ee-fer' cleaning up a Marine's arm – a day never seemed to go by without at least one person getting injured. Clumsy creatures...

He didn't need to speak for her to notice him – the silence that tended to fall over the medical bay instead of the usual murmur of chattering voices was sign enough that the wraith had made his presence known. She looked him up and down from head to toe, stumped for a moment as to why he'd turned up. Ah, then she remembered and pointed him towards the aisle nearby where the beds were. As much as he might insist on standing, his height made any of the tests just that much more difficult if he didn't comply. Selecting one, he then looked left and right before mentally wincing. Prisca was on the bed directly to the right of him and judging by the frown set above her closed eyes, was in no sweet mood. After a minute or two passed, he finally laid down on the bed. Sitting in his coat grew swiftly intolerable, which was why Commander's never slouched! Waiting patiently for the medic to finish up stitching the man's arm, he allowed his eyes to slowly close...

_She flew at him with a hiss, her hand half-raised as if in preparation to feed on him. He swiftly side-stepped, catching her wrist in one of his own hands before turning on the spot and using her own momentum to pin her firmly against one of the pillars with his own body. She squirmed, clawing and attempting to kick out with all the ferocity of a wolverine – Sheppard had so kindly allowed him to watch something called 'Animal Planet' during one of the base's days off. Finally he found an opening and caught her jaw with his free hand, tilting her head sharply up as his lips lifted off his own teeth in response. But she spoke first._

"_Traitor! How dare you!"_

_He was thrown momentarily as she spat the words at him with all the vehemence she could muster, and then finally caught on to what she meant. She was referring to when he'd stopped her from pointlessly wasting her energy trying to feed on the shielded McKay. But why hadn't she woken?_

"_You were wasting your life force...my Queen," was his murmured reply, his voice crooning as he attempted to try and at least placate her even while he remained blocking any attempt at an escape. Her chest rose and fell for a moment as her lips pursed around what was probably going to be another outburst before she finally seemed to deflate, her posture sagging as her head came to rest against his shoulder. _

"_I was just so... angry. He did it deliberately, riling me up. He wanted me to retaliate..."_

_Looking down in surprise, he then shook it off before warily stroking a hand over her hair, which appeared to have become even more tangled much like the state of her emotions. A faint growling came from his throat before he finally took a step back, perhaps just then realising that he no longer had any need to restrain her. She remained resting against him, as though she didn't have the strength to do so on her own. Taking the chance, his eyes roamed around the false Hive momentarily – scratches were seen on some of the walls, a corner of the throne seemed damaged and several statues had been flung from their niches to shatter black fragments across the floor. Trapped by her anger, she had been unable to return to a state of full consciousness and had, instead, settled into the limbo. To everyone else including Keller, she simply appeared asleep according to the signs her body gave out. But Todd had been in this liminal place before. During his imprisonment by Kolya and his predecessor before that, he had often constructed such a place within his own mind to draw comfort from. It was part of the reason he hadn't just given up, he suspected. _

_He moved then, slowly, and drew her with him before manoeuvring her into the throne and crouching so then he was level with her. As much as he might regret admitting it, she was his survival; without the human, he'd slowly starve to death. Sheppard may have allowed him to feed once, but the situation had been simple enough and had involved a member of his team. This, on the other hand, merely involved a lone wraith as a prisoner. Her head swayed a moment, her mis-matched eyes half-lidded before she raised a hand. His first instinct was to flinch given her earlier outburst, but his 'brows then rose as she traced over the starburst tattoo. Just as he was about to ask what she was doing, her hand dropped and her body sagged forwards in the throne. He caught her just as she was about to roll off, propping her against the back of it so she wouldn't move as much. A moment passed and then, like before, she slowly faded out to leave the throne empty. He'd drawn her out from her anger. Task done_.

He opened his eyes, sending them from one end of the room to the other after he'd pushed himself upright. Just in time too, as Keller rounded the corner and got right on with the examination.

"Ok, follow the light for me."

He did so, chuffing on occasion as the electrical thrum of the battery passed close to his facial slits. The humans might not be able to sense a damn thing, but it almost hummed as she moved the light this way and that. Five minutes of lights, directions and requests passed before Keller finally was satisfied that his eyes were back to normal.

"Alright, you're all in working order."

As if automatically, she then moved to stand beside Prisca and bent from the waist, lifting up one of her eyelids, then the other. Using the torch, she briefly flicked it on and off before shaking her head.

"Todd, is this normal?"

He moved over after twitching his coat into place, bending over as Jennifer did before watching her repeat the process again. The left eye was blue, with a rounded pupil – perfectly human despite the imperfections. But the right was still solidly golden with a slitted-pupil, with no signs to indicate that it'd be changing anytime soon.

"This I have not seen. It may have happened once or twice before, but it is not a common enough experience for me to know more than that."

"Great, you both know nothing..."

The muttered comment brought a smile to Jennifer's face before the medic helped her up, the expression genuine. Given the unproportionate male to female ratio, it was always good to find another friendly face of the same gender. She smiled down at the civilian before helping her to sit up. No hospital gown this time, and most certainly no needles after her escape attempt.

"How do you feel?" Keller didn't notice the momentary flickering smile of amusement appear on her lips, mirroring the one that briefly appeared on the wraith's as he now stood statue-like nearby. She wouldn't believe them, being the scientist that she was. Their little secret. So the smile broadened.

"I feel perfectly fine. All I needed was sleep, I think."

"Alright, you're dismissed then. But come back to see me in three hours anyway."

"Alright, will do Keller. Thank you"

With that, she slid off the bed before standing beside the wraith for a moment. Keller watched with a look of surprise as the pair then, without a word spoken, walked off with their steps exactly in sync. Shaking her head, she made a mental note to tell Sheppard of this observation. While they weren't doing any harm, it was an interesting development given they'd planned for her presence to be more diminished than it had turned out.


	10. Chapter 10

"Crap, this looks familiar..."

Sheppard stared at the gas masks hanging on the side of the dusty wall, suppressing a shudder. Last time he'd seen one of those things, a pretty large number of highly unpleasant and uncontrollable early Michael-monsters had been not too far behind. He tightened his grip on the butt of the P90, more as a sort of comfort gesture than anything else. It was Teyla who reassured them with what he'd been silently praying to hear, moving almost silently to stand beside him.

"I can sense no wraith presence."

"Before the hybrids? Probably."

"They weren't exactly trusted. They were like his worshippers, his slaves."

He'd been dead for some time now, having fallen from the central tower courtesy of the Athosian woman herself. If there was one thing John had learnt from the experience, it was to never get between a woman and her child. Especially one that was pretty lethal with sticks. Checking the life signs detector to find only two remaining aside from himself, Ronan and Teyla, he allowed himself to relax oh so slightly. Ronan, gun at the ready, flanked him on the right side – Rodney had volunteered to remain back on Earth, preparing a room alongside Keller to prepare for the likelihood that they found and managed to capture a live specimen. It wasn't necessarily on their to-do list when it came down to it, with finding more zpms coming supreme first, but trying to discover a way to understand or ever reverse the process was likely to help them understand precisely what the hybrid had done in his takeover bid.

Two pods, from what he could see, were left. The one on the right appeared to have been smashed in – the body inside was peppered with shards of glass and metal shrapnel, far beyond what even a wraith was able to heal and even beyond the capability of a sarcophagus. He peered at the one on the left, rapping the translucent foggy green glass before peering at the machines strapped to the front. A faint life sign flashed, far slower than required to maintain body function in a more active state – or so he guessed at least. John wasn't a medical man.

"Thank goodness he set it to have a kip while he was gone, right?"

Teyla's lips pursed at his attempt at lightening the situation. Given how the last time they'd come across one of Michael's experimental laboratories she'd ended up strapped to a table with an Iratus bug slowly crawling up her front, those old memories lurked even as she assessed the new surroundings. They seemed just as dingy and just as eerie as before. The sooner they got what they came for, the sooner they could leave.

"Why don't we just blow it up?"

"We can't, because if we find out what this thing is, maybe we can find a way to fight against it."

"But there's only this one left..."

"Ronan, we do not know how many laboratories Michael had in total. He may have left details of some on his computer, but there's no way of telling if he just remembered others. He is...was deceptive."

Sheppard took the initiative, pacing around the pod after shoving it away from the wall. Michael had, thankfully, made them transportable – no doubt if he wanted to cause havoc on another planet or had to high-tail it rather swiftly.

"Alright, let's call in the marines. Let's get this thing secured and back to Atlantis."

"By that you mean Earth."

"What? Oh... yeah."

He almost forgot sometimes that they were still on home turf. Within the shield and inside the corridors of the city, surrounded by water, it was sometimes easy to forget about the final battle with the superior Hive over his home planet's atmosphere. Ronan looked honestly disappointed at the fact they were letting whatever was inside there live, but grudgingly, like Teyla, accepted that any way of gaining more knowledge about the bastardised being was useful.

While the Pegasus galaxy had relatively been abandoned by the Taur'i since the Lost City's departure, this was one loose end that had to be tied securely. Nothing of Michael, the scourge of both wraith and human alike, could be allowed to remain for someone to possibly pick up the pieces. Thank goodness for Todd having no choice but to allow them to use one of the ZPMs he'd salvaged from the Asuran conflict to bridge the gap between galaxies. Another Midway station was planned, but certainly with far more security precautions in place. The Pegasus galaxy might still yield weapons useful to the Earth's defence, after all.

When they at last arrived back on Earth with the pod in tow, Woolsey eyed it coming into the gate room as though somebody had just dragged a corpse in the front door. Sceptical that it would be of any use, he couldn't help but admire Michael in a way. He, thanks to the rejection of both the wraith and human race, had advanced a species far beyond what had been genetically possible. A pity almost that the whole point had been to potentially conquer the galaxy. Shaking his head, he then made his way down the steps as he watched the marines wheel the dimly-lit pod into the secure room. Keller stood waiting, already wearing a complete bodysuit as well as protective armour, along with several marines with guns ready to be used should it prove more fatal. As Sheppard had already warned them of the fog from their previous encounter, gas masks had also been included. Over the radio once the doors had sealed behind, Rodney radioed Woolsey.

"_Ok, we're ready to start_."

"Be careful McKay."

"_Heh... Will do_!"

His reply had been half-hearted at best as they moved it into the centre of the room. The displays were hooked up to both human and ancient devices nearby, before they finally set to work on examining how best to get access at the creature within. Teyla, Ronan, Sheppard, Woolsey and even Todd and Prisca were watching from the viewing bay well out of reach. The former two looked nothing short of disgusted, yet the latter two merely had interested expressions on their features. This was something new, something unnatural, and therefore to be assessed as such. And so, it began.

"_Judging by the scan, the life form is much like what Sheppard encountered in the catacombs. Blind, gills on the neck, humanoid. This one's a bit different. I can't quite make it out, but it appears to have a set of working vocal cords and some sort of organ on its abdominal area_."

"You have permission to open it if you can maintain its hibernation."

"_I can Woolsey. We've got the tubes feeding the sedative right into the veins through a gap we made in the pod earlier_."

"Good, permission granted to continue."

The pod was carefully laid horizontal, and several marines moved into place on either side with their guns pointing towards where the specimen would be. Kneeling next to it, the clasp was soon burnt off and the lid carefully raised. A mist filled the immediate area for a moment, but soon dissipated into the surrounding air as a faint greenish light came from within the machine. McKay kept an eye on the monitors of course, refusing to come any nearer to the creature than was absolutely necessary.

"_Vitals are holding steady, no signs of any heightened brainwave activity_."

"_Good, that means the sedative's working_."

"_3...2..1...Lift_!"

Up it was heaved onto the bed, laid out flat before the stiff leather bindings were lashed onto the wrists, ankles and even across the chest and neck to ensure the least possible amount of thrashing should something decide to go wrong. Which, if Sheppard was a betting man, would probably be likely given the sort of record the team had for trouble finding problems. Or in this case, vice versa. It was nothing short of hideous. No eyes existed within the sockets, and loose skin had grown over where they'd be. The gills seemed to flutter slightly as it slowly breathed, giving off nothing of the same disorientating fog as had been encountered on the last mission. The rest of the body seemed almost normal, save for the sort of pebbly substance over its stomach. And so, Keller began her careful examination with the help of the sterilised tools.

"_Subject is male, and I'd guess he'd be around forty years old_."

She tested the muscles of its chest, using a glove to press down on them. The creature, much like the wraith that they'd been partially based off, seemed to have a compacter muscle structure than humans. Certainly something to admire, from a scientific perspective.

"_He appears well-built, with the same skin texture as the wraith_."

She moved the camera lower, showing the pebbly substance over its abdomen before frowning.

"_This appears to be a growth of some kind. Attempting to gain a sample_."

Exchanging the camera for a scalpel, she carefully reached towards it to try and scrape off a layer of the rock-looking material. The moment the metal touched the flesh, all hell broke loose. The reaction started, surprisingly, inside the viewing area overlooking the room. Prisca reeled away from the glass, doubling over and cradling her head at precisely the same time as Todd let out a snarl, his hands clenching and unclenching in almost spasming movements as he gestured towards his head. The creature let out a shriek then, but more than just the audible noise had ripped through the air as well. A wave of sickening, whining psionic sound had radiated out from the section of its body that she'd been intending to study. Sheppard, who'd instantly yanked his gun out of the holster at the first sign of response from the duo to his right, kept it trained on them even as his eyes flicked to the experiment. It seemed still in comparison to what effects it had triggered, although its mouth was stretched open in what appeared to be an agonising scream as its spine arched with a series of sickening pops. Instantly, all gun were trained on it and Woolsey barked into the microphone.

"Keller! Sedate it!"

"I don't think I can! There was enough in it already to kill a human!"

Sheppard's voice interrupted then, yanking the device away from the surprised leader's hands.

"Marines! Shoot to kill!"

Without a second thought amidst Rodney's startled babbling and the clattering noise of equipment being sent flying, seven guns were raised before a volley smacked into the creature with a resounding series of cracks and thumps as they found a target. The silent shriek continued for a moment, then its jaws finally went slack and it sagged against the bed. Todd's movements stilled as he leant heavily against the wall nearby, panting quietly as his eyes closed, while Prisca used the rail nearby for support as her legs trembled. Both of them looked distinctly ill. Good thing Teyla hadn't been there, or they'd have had even more side-effects to deal with.

"Is it dead?"

"Yes... Area secure, specimen deceased with no signs of attempted healing."

"Good."

The guns were lowered within the room, and two assistants wearing masks arrived to help clean up the mess. Thankfully the bindings had been enough to restrain it, although it had put up a startling lack of a struggle upon awakening. And so, shaken but satisfied that the threat had been neutralised, John turned to watch the two that he'd been initially guarding anyway.

"What the hell happened?"

"It sent out a psionic scream, far higher and on a different plane of mind than you are capable of sensing," was Todd's reluctant mutter. That's what he presumed it was anyway. The Commander had never encountered such a creature in his life, all several thousand years of it.

"And its life force tasted foul. It deliberately tried to make me feed on it by using the scream, making me classify it as a threat," Prisca added, looking to the wraith almost as if for help. Unable and probably unwilling to move much as well, he merely chuffed and gave a curt nod. She'd been correct. Queen's knows what would have happened if she'd taken any of it in, or what would have happened to himself if the sound had continued for much longer.

"So it's a psychic threat and not just a physical one?"

Woolsey interrupted then, having paced over after overseeing the clean-up with a frown.

"Didn't your report say that they killed and ate the villagers?"

"Well, yeah."

"Then it seems, Sheppaaarrrd, that this is another stage up from what you encountered..."

A collective shudder passed through them at the thought at Todd's deduction. If evolution had taken Michael's idea and taken it along a new path entirely without intervention, what might be waiting to spread across the bridge of space to the Milky Way at the first chance?


	11. Chapter 11

"Ah, I'm glad you could join us for once Prisca."

Such a pity that she believed only Woolsey and Sheppard truly accepted her presence within the halls of Atlantis. But despite the glare from Ronan and Teyla's false smile, she placed herself beside Rodney on the end of the bench and gave the current leader of the city a small smile back in response. Socialising was not her strong point; the only company she'd kept consistently was of the various Marines guarding Todd and the wraith himself. Even Keller was always too busy for a conversation most of the time, especially now given what they'd discovered within the pod.

"Thank you for inviting me to join you."

"Well we hadn't seen you around that much. While you _are_ a civilian, you are still beneficial and as valued as any other member here."

"I generally got the impression that I wasn't welcome, so I kept to myself."

A predictable silence fell, made all the more tense by the stiffening of the Pegasus natives. Seems they hadn't been that discreet about hiding it. Rodney flicked his eyes between them as though expecting a verbal tennis match, but it was finally John who interrupted. As much as he hated wraith...

"Look, you're not unwelcome. We just..."

"...don't like the idea of you keeping him alive."

Ronan's sour response around a mouthful of toast didn't go unheard. Woolsey opened his mouth to quell the Satedan's comment, but Prisca beat him to it with those mismatched eyes narrowed.

"He has every right to live as you do. Keller told me that something in my genes, which allows me to feed without harming, _might_ be beneficial in engineering a retrovirus. If it works, you'll no longer have any reason to shun him."

"He'll still be a wraith."

"But no longer able to feed. That is what makes a wraith so hated; their need to feed."

No argument came back, only a grunt of disagreement before he stalked off to the arena. John raised his eyebrows momentarily in surprise, silently relieved that the man hadn't been armed at the time. The last time anyone had tried to convince Ronan that the cure was a good idea, he'd been playing with the damn thing the whole time. Teyla remained however, and finally took up that neutral stance they'd grown familiar with.

"We just find it... difficult, to adapt to the idea that the wraith will one day be no threat."

"Well, there'll always be a threat. Renegade wraiths, goa'uld, rogue asgard... Or maybe even a new enemy. I just don't see why there can't be a middle ground between extermination and letting them do as they wish. He'd go along with it if it can work, I'm sure of it."

"So long as the cullings and threat to my people end, I am glad."

"I am sure a day will soon come when such is true, Teyla."

A warmer smile was then shared between the two before the Athosian dismissed herself with a slow bow of her head. No doubt to find the Runner. Rodney, munching away on his second power bar of the day, finally decided to steer the topic onto another subject.

"So what actually happened with that... thing up in the viewing room I heard about?"

"Well, it'd be like you sitting in front of rotten eggs. You know it is food, but you also know that eating it will make you terribly ill. That thing, whatever it is, knew that it was food, saw me and Todd as a threat, and acted accordingly."

"But how did it sense that? I can understand it recognising Todd due to perhaps a very weak form of the network, but why you? You look..."

"...normal," Sheppard tagged on, interrupting the flow of their conversation with a boyish grin.

Rodney chuckled and she mimicked the sound, shaking her head a little before nodding a little in agreement. Why she'd seen these two as a threat was quite beyond her now. The scientist was still the sceptic, typical McKay, but at least saw her as a source of conversation. John, while considering her a potential liability, felt at least some sympathy for her coping in this strange, secret world she'd been dragged into due to a trait that was entirely out of her control.

"Well, me and Rodney have got a mission to prepare for soon, so we'll get going once he's finished that cup of coffee."

"Anything interesting?"

Sheppard paused then, his eyes twitching to Woolsey to seek permission. While missions were generally known amongst most of the crew that were needed to prepare for it, some aspects were still off limits. John didn't really feel like getting another 'overstepping boundaries' lecture today. With a nod, permission was granted. She'd been there, so it wasn't exactly a secret either.

"We're going to check out each of Michael's labs, to make sure that there's no more of those new things lurking in any unchecked corridors."

"See, if I had something that'd evolved beyond what I'd made, I'd keep it somewhere completely separate. I wouldn't want to run the risks of someone obliterating all my work in one go."

"She's got a point John..."

"But how are we supposed to find them? It's not like we can check every single planet."

"Why not get a variation of a tracker? Key it in to a genetic signature, rather than a specific individual. Is that possible Rodney?"

He blinked, then shrugged before crumpling the wrapper up with a rustle. It was an idea, after all, but it sounded more suited for wraith technology than anything they'd found of the ancients or of their own making.

"Why is it you always turn to me to see if something's possible? Then again, I am the most brilli-"

"Rodney!"

"What? Ok, ok! Yes, it could be possible at a push if we combine it with organic wraith technology."

"Can you do that?"

"Yeah, in a month maybe! There's only one who can faster."

"I'll ask him."

Woolsey blinked, his coffee cup halfway raised to his lips as he heard that statement before a frown appeared momentarily on his features as he leant forwards to address her better.

"You do realise that this is a wraith you're referring to."

"Of course. I am well aware of what his species does. Sheppard gave me a biology lecture."

"Then you realise also that he can't be trusted."

"You want to get this done, correct? He's a wraith. It would be faster to combine it with wraith technology. It'll benefit him as well. That... thing in the pod was a threat even to a Commander as old as him. Imagine what possibly more of those things would be like."

He sighed, and then looked to John. Ultimately, considering it concerned more of a military matter than a diplomatic one, he'd allow the Colonel to make a decision. Sheppard mulled it over for a moment, taking a gulp or two of coffee with a contemplative expression before finally coming to a decision.

"Fine, ask him."

With a grin that Rodney swore shouldn't be on the face of someone about to go and talk to an imprisoned wraith, she almost skipped off, much to the baffled amusement of those she passed.

"Do you really think letting her get so close to him is wise?"

"She's a smart girl. Plus if he kills her, he'll starve to death. He's got no other choice but to co-operate, if he's as smart as he acts like he is."

Woolsey sighed, getting off the bench and adjusting his glasses for a moment before looking at the pair. He really was surprised sometimes how quickly he'd adapted to knowing about all this. Goa'uld, ancients, ori, wraith... Just another day.


	12. Chapter 12

_Prod_.

He opened his eyes a little and grunted, stiffly lifting his head up a little off the softness of the pillows beneath. While sleeping during imprisonment wasn't normal behaviour for a wraith, Todd knew the humans well enough to understand that so long as he didn't make himself a threat, he wouldn't be stabbed in his sleep. From his observations, they seemed to have a sort of code in dealing with prisoners regardless of species.

_Prod, prod_.

Again, the mental sensation came and went, just as fleeting. Tightening his lips with irritation, he reached out with his own psionic tendrils towards the source. But, predictably knowing his luck, it danced just out of reach, remaining teasingly on the edge of his senses.

_Prod_.

Just as he was about to mentally lash out in the rough direction of the thing, a series of knocks came on the door. Knock. Knock, knock. Knock. The guilty culprit was then realised, and some of his irritation faded out. Not all of it mind, but he didn't feel like smacking the offending brain against a wall right this minute.

"Let her in." '_Not that I really have a say in who comes or goes_...'

At the granting of permission, the door swung open and in almost skipped Prisca. Well, skipped, then partially tripped as she narrowly missed catching her foot on the edge of the chair he'd moved to do exercises against. Allowing his mind to stagnate was one thing, but he certainly wanted to keep active. With flushed cheeks no doubt from making her way down there, she greeting him in that typical way; head bowed slightly, then two fingers touching her lips. He'd asked her once what it meant, and she said that it was written in a story that it symbolised that no lies would come from her speech. '_We'll see'_.

"Do what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?" He was seemingly polite when being addressed, yet fully aware of his status amongst the Taur'i as nothing more than a useful prisoner. He settled on one of the chairs opposite, lowering himself stiffly down onto it as she mirrored his movements almost perfectly. How she did so wasn't his concern, but it must have been interesting from the marine's perspective waiting outside.

"I have a proposal."

"Oh?" Now he was a bit more cagey, enough so that she just caught a flicker of wariness in his eyes before it was swiftly replaced by that emotionless, steady gaze again.

"Not one for beating about the bush, good. We have thought of a way to possibly see if there are any of the evolved hybrids, by combining the technology of a location transmitter with organic wraith technology along with a sample of DNA from the creature. It, in theory, would then track only those with that specific genetic signature."

His brow ridges raised in mild surprise. He'd been expecting something far less plausible than what idea had just been presented to him. It made sense, and actually now that he thought about it, might very well work. But as ever had been before with the Atlantean Taur'i, something had to be in place to ensure that he wouldn't try and use it for his own ends. This now that he knew about it, was exactly what his mind was mulling over. Todd didn't want to get back-stabbed. So he leant forwards, his palms pressing flat to the table as he moved until his nose was just a hairs breadth from her own. She remained still, watching nothing but his eyes. Impressive, he'd reluctantly admit.

"What will happen with the technology after? Will it be used to track and exterminate my kind?"

"I... don't know. I'm not really in on the loop." '_No need to mention I helped come up with it'_.

"What are their conditions?"

"That if you don't do it, I go back to Earth. Permanently."

Effectively, he was being told to either work or he'd starve to death. How typical. With a sigh as he slowly lowered himself back down into the seat, he let a disgruntled hiss out from between his teeth at the situation. As reluctant as he was to admit it, starving to death was one fate he had no desire to meet. He wanted a new Queen to serve, hell, even a hiveship alliance if destiny decided to be so kind to him. Ending his days as a weak and pathetic member of his species in a cell wasn't included. So, with his lip curling up into a sneer, he nodded.

"Very well... It is not like I have much choice."

"I'm sorry, you don't." The smile after she spoke was faint, but genuine. He'd observed this one and humans in general enough to know whether an apology was false or not. Prisca didn't seem capable of lying, not to him at least. Perhaps it was out of fear, or respect. With a sigh, he nodded.

"I thought as much. Will you be around?" Then he silently kicked himself. That last question could have been worded more appropriately. He didn't need her around, but her unbiased company was a welcome relief from the possibility of staring down a gun barrel if you so much as sneezed in the wrong direction. He might enjoy being feared, but some people took it to a stupid level.

She looked surprised at the question, but then nodded. As it had been partially her idea, she was of course curious as to the process of actually making it. But as the pager on her belt buzzed, a look of disappointment appeared as she briefly scratched at her jawline.

"Oh, almost forgot," was mumbled, before a piece of folded paper was slid across the table to him. As he reached to pick it up, up she got off the seat and away she went. No doubt Keller had called her, or perhaps Rodney – he was only vaguely attentive to who knew who on the base, it didn't overly concern him.

Unfolding the piece of printer paper, a look of surprise appeared on his features once more. An image had been drawn onto it in pencil, and even coloured in as well. It was him, drawn so he appeared partially facing the viewer and looking out what he guessed was a window to the left. She'd dotted stars on the other side of the smudging that resembled glass. Looking closer, he mentally winced at the expression she'd given him; hopeful, yet with a mournful feel in his eyes. Is that how she really saw him, past all the posturing and arrogance? He traced over it lightly with his claws, following the lines of his coat and even his shadow. Regardless of her interpretation, she had taken emotion and time to make it. Peering around, he then found the sticky substance that John had called 'blu-tak'. Tearing off a bit, he then applied a little onto each corner before pressing it to the clean room wall. With a huff, he then moved over to the bed and sat, hands on his knees, to patiently await the summoning.


End file.
